Kashmiri Writer Abu Aarif’s Life That Experienced Variegated Political Ideologies
By Mushtaq Ul Haq Ahmad Sikander, New
Age Islam
12 June 2023
Khas Lamhey Zindagi Kye (Special Moments of Life)
Author: Abu Aarif
Publisher: Meezan Publishers and Distributors,
Srinagar, Kashmir
Year of Publication: 2018
Pages: 210, Price: Not mentioned
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The Kashmir Conflict, since the partition
of the subcontinent has led to numerous deaths of civilians and justified
violence against them. The violence still continues to consume numerous souls,
but its intensity has toned down. With the violent insurgency being at its
lowest ebb, the militarization of the region has not gone down. It is the
analysis of security experts that despite the stationing of more than a million
troops that includes the local police, counter insurgency groups and informal
militias, even less than two hundred non state violent actors have the
potential to engage such huge proportions of security forces. Some call it the
strength of the guerilla insurgency. Barring, the violent tussle between state
and non-state violent actors, there are numerous people who belong to different
political parties and ideologies and become casualty in the violent conflict.
Variegated political ideologies and parties
are enough to get someone eliminated in a violent conflict. The antagonistic
parties believe that their path is the only correct one and any opposition
needs to be decimated. The political parties certainly are either aligned to
the State or against it, and both have the Guns for Hire, that can be
potentially used to destroy the ‘enemies.’ Every politician, political worker
or member of a political party has a huge story to share about his survival in
the insurgency ridden Kashmir valley. A lot of political workers and members of
political parties were gunned down by unknown gunmen. These included both pro
Indian and anti-Indian political parties. In the early 1990s the pages of local
newspapers were full of public notices by members and leaders of political
parties particularly National Conference (NC) and Congress. In these public
notices, they informed the public that they have resigned from the basic
membership of these political parties and from now on they have no affiliation
with them. These non-involvement notices, were published to escape from the
wrath of insurgents, who killed any such person. The big political leaders and
members who had the means escaped to other states, but lower rung members who
had no such means had to publish their resignations, as a part of their
survival.
This book is a political memoir of a
Congress member, Abdul Jabbar Lone, pen name Abu Arif from Kashmir. He has been
member of Congress even during Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah’s time, who described
them as worms of gutter. He asked people to socially, economically and
religiously boycott them, and during that era many people affiliated with
Congress party, were buried without anyone offering funeral prayers for them.
He documents such details in his memoir. Now in his old age, he has realized
that leaders are responsible and main culprits for the miseries of the people.
He laments at the fact that they still have the power to deceive people (P-12).
Among the first-generation leaders of
Congress in Kashmir, was Ghulam Rasool Kar, with whom he had a working
relationship but he could not trust Aarif’s loyalty. Although, he could not
complete his formal studies, through his personal penchant for studies, he
became a writer and poet. He describes how he was arrested in a false case by
police, as a renegade turned politician of panther’s party was assassinated. It
is a common trend even now, that innocent people are booked for the crimes that
they did not commit. He is also critical of the newspapers and journalists
because most of them do not stand with truth, but are driven by their vested
interests.
He informs the reader that despite being a
Congress man, he was responsible for organizing the commemoration event of
December 5 at the grave of Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah. Due to the threat from
militants no commemoration of death anniversary of Sheikh was held for five
long yeas. Given this commitment, NC offered him a ticket to stand for
elections in 1996, that he declined (P-95). His commitment towards Congress
seems to be misplaced, as he is praising NC, finds Geelani to be a nationalist
(P-112). He also describes his tussle with ex Congress leader Abdul Ghani Lone,
who then joined Hurriyat Conference. He called Arif agent of Ghulam Rasool Kar,
but he rebutted him as being a paid agent too, who wanted to abrogate article
370 (P-113). The personality of Ghani Lone, is an enigma, who was a Congress
leader, and then many say due to influence of Syed Ali Geelani joined Hurriyat
and later on, due to the propaganda by Geelani, he was assassinated. But then
he also praises the Lone clan, although the political leanings of his progeny
are variegated. He likes Maulana Abul Aala Mawdudi, as well as Geelani too, as
religious personalities, despite being a congressman. Either he is confused, or
he has neither understood the works of Mawdudi nor the ideology of Congress,
because both stand on opposite ends that can never meet. For a criticism of
Congress, he should have read Hindustani Musalman Aur Maujuda Siyasi
Kashmakash, penned down by Mawdudi before partition, as a series of essays that
later on were compiled in three volumes.
Arif describes how the survival of Indian
political party members was difficult in Kashmir during 1990s. He is also critical
of role of Congress in sabotaging Sheikh Abdullah’s rule. He is critical of how
the Kashmiris were harassed by hotel owners of Jammu as they were running away
from the Valley. He informs about Abdul Rahman Mukhlis a writer, who was
demeaned despite being a competent writer. There are bits of information here
and there scattered all around the book, because it does not follow a
chronology or pattern. The book seems to be a compilation of essays written at
different times, although informative but many times confuse the reader. We are
informed about another Kashmiri Congress leader Muhammad Shafi Qureshi and his
railway project about Kashmir.
The criticism of Arif spans all over the
book, from the Governor Jagmohan who is held responsible for the migration of
Pandits from Kashmir. He criticizes Jagmohan based on the fact that instead of
protecting the Hindu minority Pandits, he arranged free transport for them
(P-148) He also holds Indo-Pak tussle responsible for hampering the progress of
both these countries.
It is a good read as it adds to understand
a number of nuances about Kashmir, its politics and politicians. However,
instead of just relying on his memory, a little background research will have
helped to improve the book, as many times it churns wrong facts. Maqbool Bhat
was not chairman of Liberation Front (P-19), Maulana Anwar Shah Kashmir, never
praised Tafhim ul Quran (exegesis of Quran), written by Maulana Mawdudi
(P-109). Anwar Shah Kashmiri passed away in 1933, Mawdudi had not even started
writing Tafhim then. However, with these flaws the memoir contains an insider
account about many issues, people and how politics worked out in Kashmir, from
the pen of a congressman.
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M.H.A. Sikander is Writer-Activist based in Srinagar, Kashmir
URL: https://newageislam.com/books-documents/moments-kashmiri-writer-aarif-life/d/129970
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